Our little lady is going to be 1 year old tomorrow (where has the time gone?!) and we were wondering when we can begin to take her out for longer walks (a few hours long) and hiking in the valleys with us? Thanks for your help!
The 5 minute rule isn't a rule, but guidance. No-one seems to know where it came from or what it exactly means with regard to number if times a day, what type of exercise etc etc. You can certainly have yoyr girl out for longer walks now, just make sure you build up to longer walks - there's a significant difference between an hour and a 'few hours'
Honestly, I think you just have to follow your pup's lead. Diggy was very clear early on when he was tired during a walk, so we knew how long was too long and gradually increased time from there. You could start with an hour or so and see how your pup does and go from there.
I agree with everyone above. Start off slowly by increasing the length of his walks over a few weeks. Some dogs will go and go and go, so you don’t always know if they’ve had enough so it’s important not to rush it. At 1 years old, Harley was easily walking for 1-1.5 hours a day.
